smith



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

G. Y. SMITH.

GRAIN STEAMER AND DRIER.

' No. 498,731. Patented May 30, 1893.

Fi j;

%%fi/@%w9 fl /b-zam m s. I v k TN: NORRIS PETERS C ITHCL. WASHINGTON. DC.

(No Model.) v 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

G. Y. SMITH. GRAIN STEAMER AND DRIER.

No. 498,731. Patented-May 30, 1893.

: uonms wrrzns 00.. wow-unto.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE Y. SMITH,-OF MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TOFRED. G. ATKINSON, OF SAME PLACE.

GRAIN STEAMER AND DRIER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 498,731, dated May 30,18 93.

Application filed April 27, 1892.

T0 at whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE Y, SMITH, a citizen of the United States,residing at Minneapolis, in the county of Hennepin and State ofMinnesota,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in GrainSteamers and Driers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

My invention has for its object to provide an efficient grain steamerand drier; and the invention consists in certain novel features ofconstruction and arrangement of the parts which will be hereinaftenfullydescribed and be particularly defined in the claims.

My machine is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein,likeletters referring to like parts throughout, Figure l is a sectionalelevation of the machine, some of the parts being shown in full, andother parts being broken away. .Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on theline X X of Fig. 1.

A is the shell constituting the inclosing case and may be of anysuitable form; but is preferably cylindrical.

A is a removable cap section, which whenin position is continuous withthe body of the case.

A is ahopper-like discharge section, at the bottom of the case.

B b I) represent a series of chambers for the heat medium. Thesechambers are all constructed with spaces or passages for the grain, andall parts of the same are angular in cross section with the apex of theangle uppermost. Preferably, they are constructed as shown, wherein thepart B represents an annulus and the parts I) b hollow radial arms orextensions from the said annulus, the radial parts I) projecting outwardbeyond the annulus, and the radial part b projecting inward from theannulus and terminating near to but at a point short of the center ofthe circle.

To give the greatest possible radiating surface to the heat mediumchambers, without narrowing the passage between said chambers, the undersides of the same are made of Serial No. 430,934. (No model.)

reverse form to the top sides, that is, the chambers, in cross sectionare in the form of a parallelogram positioned with one of its diagonals,in a vertical plane. These chambers are conveniently made up of castingsand are placed one above the other in such relative positions, thattheir radiating surfaces will break joints with each other.

Each chamber or casting is provided with tubular projections 11 which,when theparts are in working position, form! continuous tubes placingthe entire series in communication with each other, and also serve as apassage way for stay-rods C, by means of which the entire set aresecurely clamped together. The weight of the series of castings is takenby an angular flange D located near the bottom of the case A.

The bottom member of the series of castings is in communication withasupply pipe C provided with a hand-valve 0 This pipe is in communicationwith a source of steam not shown. An air valve O is'tapped through thecase A, and into the upper member of the series of heat medium chambersor castings, for the outlet of the air when'admitting steam, to insurethe circulation in the usual way. A vertical shaft E is located'at thecenter of the entire series of castings, being supported by bushings orcaps E, resting on the inner arms I) of the said castings, and isprovided with a series of radial arms E radiating from common hubssecured to the said shaft in any suitable way, as by set-screws 6. Theseradial arms are located in the spaces between the castings; and theshaft is provided, at its lower end, with a hand-lever E projectingoutward through a peripheral slot in the casing A. This deviceconstitutes a shaker or a scraper for clearing the chambers, or rather,the spaces between the chambers, in case the grain should becomeclogged. At the upper end of the said shaker-shaft E, is secured aconical spreader F which acts as a deflecting surface for distributingthe grain on its entrance at the head of the series of beat mediumchambers.

G is a spider secured at thejunction of the upper and lower sections A Aof the case; and has cast therewith a hollow vertical ex- Ioo tension Gwhich constitutes a seat for a valve H, which is connected at its upperend with a cone shaped discharge head or gate H which works within thelower end of abell-mouthed inlet spout H Directly under the gate ll andsecured to the valve seat G is located a perforated coneshapeddistributing head H Directly below the large end of this distributinghead is a baffle plate H secured to the valve seat G and slightly spacedapart from the lower margin of the distributing head to give a marginalopening between the two. The valve seat G is in communication by a pipeG with the main steam supply pipe 0 and is provided, outside the case,with a hand valve G The valve H is normally held in its uppermostposition by a spring H The cooperation of this spring and the weight ofthe grain within the inlet spout I1 renders the infeed of the grainautomatic.

The Valve H is provided with longitudinal openings so as to permit thesteam to pass below the same as well as above the valve, thus renderingthe valve balanced. The upper eX- tension of the valve seat is providedwith discharge openings H directly into the interior of the distributinghead H The effect of this construction of the devices for introducingthe steam and supplying the grain is to spread out or distribute thegrain into a showerlike sheet over the surface and from the margin ofthe distributing head H and to cause the steam to be thrown outward fromwithin the said head on the body or shower of the moving grain, throughthe perforations near the top of the same,and also at the marginalopening between the lower end of the head and the baffle plate l-l. Atthis latter point, the shower of grain is most widely spread out ordistributed and the steam is thrown out against the same in a continuoussheet from the surface of the baffle plate H thus rendering the actionmore effective.

For the purpose of checking the flow from the inlet spout H the surfaceof the feed gate H may be corrugated as shown at h; and the lower marginof the same may be extended outward beyond the margin of the spout andbe provided with an upturned flange h, over which the grain isdelivered. This causes the grain to be thrown outward over a largersurface at the point of its delivery from the said gate; and also givesa more efficient seal when the said gateis in its uppermost or closedposition, inasmuch as the cup formed by the outer flange 71, will remainfull of grain. The fact that the inlet spout H is bell mouthed preventsthe clogging of the grain within the same, insuring the proper feed.

A perforated shell or a body of wire cloth K is located within the capsection A surrounding the grain infeeding and steaming devices, and isslightly spaced apart from the inner surface of the said cap section.This shell K is preferably provided with a hopper sha ed lower section Kinclinin inward 7 7 and the space between the lower end of the same andthe inner surface of the cap section A of the case is closed by animperforate inclined plate K At some point this plate K extends outwardthrough the casin g as shown at K the casing being slotted for thatpurpose. This perforate shell or wire cloth K K constitutes a condensingsurface, when taken in connection with the inner surface of the casing;and permits the outward passage of the steam while retaining the grain.Hence the drip from the condensed steam will be gathered on the inclinedplate K and be directed off through the outlet spout K I This is amaterial advantage, as otherwise the water from the condensed steamwould be carriedforward with the grain into the drier, and largelyincrease the work to be done thereby.

The steamer and the drier were designed for cooperative use. Itisobvious, however, from the construction that either is capable of useindependent of the other. The steaming devices may, in fact, be entirelyremoved from the drier; and any other suitable form of infeed devices besubstituted to supply the grain to the latter.

The supply pipe G is provided with a screw threaded union G whichpermits the same to be detached; and the cap section A of the case,together with the spider G which supports the infeeding and steamdistributing devices,is detachably connected with the main case A byflange plates and bolts and nuts, or by any other suitable means.-

The general operation of the machine is obvious.Thegrainwillbefedintothecase over the steaming devices in a shower likesheet and will be there subjected to the steaming action. From thesteaming device, the grain falls directly onto the spreader F, by whichit is deflected over the upper heat medium chamber. By the constructionand arrangement of these heat medium chambers, as described, the streamof grain, on its descent over the same, will be successively subdividedand made to pass over a large number of radiating surfaces. The grain inthis descent will be successivelythrown to and from the center of thecase, in virtue of the arrangement of the annular chambers B and thecentral caps E, and will also, in vitue of the arrangement of the radialarms or chambers 11 and b, be successively subdivided and thrown to andfro, in a direction transverse to the movements caused by the saidannular chambers. Thus it will be seen that the grain will be thoroughlyagitated, exposing to the greatest possible extent, each particle ofgrain, to the heating surfaces. By the time the grain reaches the bottomof the case, it will have been effectually heated or dried out, and beready for the desired use. The construction and arrangement of theseheat medium chambers, as shown and described, gives a very large amountof radiating surface in comparatively small compass.

IIO

It will be understood that instead of the annulus with inner and outerradial portions, the castings forming the heat medium chambers, might bemade with hollow central hubs and outside radial portions only,projecting therefrom. That arrangement of the parts,

however, would not be so stable, if the Inachine was large; and wouldnot permit all the parts to be arranged so as to break joints with eachother.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates, is as follows:

1. A grain heater, comprising an inclosing case and a series of heatmedium chambers, constructed in cross section, in theform of aparallelogram, positioned with one of the diagonals of the parallelogramin a vertical position, the said chambers being so arranged that theadjacent chambers break joints with each other, substantially as and forthe purpose set forth.

2. A grain drier, comprising an inclosing case and a series of heatmedium chambers arranged one above the other, each of which consists ofan annulus provided with radial arms, all parts of which annulus andradial arms are of angular form in cross section with the apices of theangles uppermost, the said chambers being so arranged that all the partsof adjacent chambers break joints with each other, substantially asdescribed.

3. The combination with the inclosing case and the' series of heatmedium chambers spaced apart from each other, in vertical arrangement,of a shaking or clearing device, provided with horizontal fingersworking between the said chambers, for preventing clogging,substantially as described.

4. Thecombination with the inclosing case of the heat medium chambers invertical arsaid chambers and an operating handle on the said shaftextending outward through a slot in the case, substantially asdescribed.

5. The combination with a suitable case of a cone shaped distributinghead on to which the grain is fed, a baffle plate directly below thesaidhead and spaced apart therefrom, to

leave a marginal passage between the said thereto a valve located in thedischarge sec- I tion of the steam supply pipe, and a perforateddistributing head, cone shaped, surrounding the said discharge sectionof the steam supply pipe with its small end directly under the saidgate, and a baffle plate directly below the said distributing head, andspacedapart therefrom with a marginal passage for the steam, the saidparts operating substantially as described.

7. In a grain steamer the combination with the inclosing case, theinfeed devices for the grain and the steam distributing devices, of aperforate shell or wire cloth, surrounding the said grain feeding andsteam distributing devices inside the said case and provided with a dripcollecting surface with an outlet ex tending through the case,substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signaturein presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE Y. SMITH.

Witnesses:

FRED. G. ATKINSON, JAs. F. WILLIAMSON.

